Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medellin and Hermel

For one person, living is cheaper in Hermel: $993 a month against $1,614 in Medellin, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Medellin
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Medellin Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Hermel
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Hermel Living Index

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Medellin

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,614

/mo nomad

Hermel

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$993

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Medellin and in Hermel

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Medellin and in Hermel actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Medellin versus $993 in Hermel.

Medellin $1,614
Hermel $993

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,402 in Medellin versus $1,594 in Hermel.

Medellin $2,402
Hermel $1,594

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,190 in Medellin versus $2,194 in Hermel.

Medellin $3,190
Hermel $2,194

Living in Medellin is roughly 63% more expensive than in Hermel, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Medellin is 20% above, Hermel is 26% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.93 COP 25.2K

$11.80 LBP 1.1M

-32.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.13 COP 146.3K

$69.6 LBP 6.2M

-33.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.50 COP 30.1K

$9.96 LBP 891.3K

-4.62%

Cappuccino

$3.11 COP 9,866

$4.42 LBP 395.6K

-29.64%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 COP 5,800

$2.29 LBP 204.7K

-20.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.38 COP 4,360

$0.86 LBP 76.9K

60.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.05 COP 9,672

$5.14 LBP 459.7K

-40.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.50 COP 17.4K

$4.71 LBP 421.3K

16.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 COP 4,600

$1.90 LBP 170.3K

-23.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.36 COP 7,496

$0.85 LBP 76.3K

177.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.68 COP 5,328

$2.35 LBP 210.5K

-28.51%

Eggs

$2.86 COP 9,077

$3.56 LBP 318.2K

-19.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.19 COP 32.3K

$11.20 LBP 1.0M

-9.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.53 COP 30.2K

$10.55 LBP 944.2K

-9.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.04 COP 44.5K

$14.62 LBP 1.3M

-3.97%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 COP 12.9K

$2.98 LBP 266.7K

36.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 COP 4,742

$1.70 LBP 151.8K

-11.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 COP 6,891

$1.67 LBP 149.2K

29.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 COP 7,310

$1.52 LBP 135.7K

51.97%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 COP 6,113

$1.21 LBP 108.5K

59.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.64 COP 5,196

$1.59 LBP 142.3K

3.14%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.13 COP 3,571

$1.22 LBP 109.5K

-7.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 COP 3,954

$0.67 LBP 59.7K

86.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.99 COP 12.6K

$3.03 LBP 271.0K

31.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.35 COP 42.3K

$10.88 LBP 974.1K

22.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 COP 5,384

$1.28 LBP 114.6K

32.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 COP 7,525

$2.56 LBP 228.8K

-7.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.21 COP 3,827

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$76.5 COP 242.5K

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.32 COP 4,179

$5.11 LBP 457.2K

-74.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.14 COP 6,774

$2.20 LBP 196.5K

-2.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.47 COP 26.8K

$22.43 LBP 2.0M

-62.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.30 COP 4,114

$1.09 LBP 98.0K

19.27%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$28.0K COP 88.7M

$52.9K LBP 4.7B

-47.12%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$35.4K COP 112.3M

$32.6K LBP 2.9B

8.63%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$172 COP 545.6K

$231 LBP 20.7M

-25.50%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$13.37 COP 42.4K

$21.90 LBP 2.0M

-38.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.73 COP 91.1K

$37.63 LBP 3.4M

-23.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.24 COP 143.5K

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.04 COP 54.0K

Cinema Ticket

$6.28 COP 19.9K

$9.84 LBP 880.3K

-36.18%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$770 COP 2.4M

$683 LBP 61.2M

12.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,011 COP 28.6M

$10.8K LBP 970.0M

-16.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.4 COP 274.0K

$67.4 LBP 6.0M

28.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$57.1 COP 181.1K

$49.46 LBP 4.4M

15.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$137 COP 432.9K

$137 LBP 12.2M

0.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.9 COP 310.4K

$120 LBP 10.7M

-18.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 COP 3.3M

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$616 COP 2.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,892 COP 6.0M

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,023 COP 3.2M

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,059 COP 12.9M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 COP 5.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$652 COP 2.1M

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.94

-0.55%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Medellin: October 12, 2026

Last update for Hermel: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Medellin

$616 38.2%

Hermel

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Medellin

$295 18.3%

Hermel

$274 27.6% 7.1% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medellin

$214 13.3%

Hermel

$291 29.3% 35.6% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Medellin

$170 10.5%

Hermel

$168 16.9% 1.2% $2.1

Eating Out

Medellin

$168 10.4%

Hermel

$225 22.7% 33.6% $57

Getting Around

Medellin

$93 5.8%

Hermel

$16 * 1.6% 82.8% $77

Sport & Entertainment

Medellin

$58 3.6%

Hermel

$20 * 2% 66% $38

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $46.00 in Medellin vs $70.0 in Hermel. Groceries flip the comparison at $295 vs $274, with Hermel cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Medellin

🇱🇧 Hermel

🕒 Local time

08:31 8:31 AM

16:31 4:31 PM

8 h ahead of Medellin

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,486,723

22,250

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.15 USD

10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LBP, USD, EUR to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3,171 COP (10,000 COP = 3.15 USD). 1 EUR = 3,565 COP (10,000 COP = 2.81 EUR).

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,618 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.94 EUR).

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Medellin Hermel 11,590 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Medellin
Hermel

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Medellin vs Hermel: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hermel wins on cost – living expenses run 63% lower than in Medellin. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Hermel the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $2,421 in Medellin and $1,490 in Hermel to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Medellin. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,614 per month in Medellin versus $993 in Hermel – a 63% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $993 in Hermel versus $1,614 in Medellin, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Hermel but tight or insufficient in Medellin. The gap between the two cities makes Hermel the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Hermel delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $993 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Hermel hard to pass up.

Expats usually find Hermel gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Medellin. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.